Feeling inspired by everyone's story. Have felt out of place at so many races bcuz I'm still just walking. Hoping to start walk/run. It's nice to read that so many others have been able to start and accomplish the C25K.

I've been an occasional runner for some time, but I've struggled to make gains. I sign up and "run" a couple of 5k's per year, but I've never completed one without walking, and my best time is around 36 minutes. My 11 year old son has recently shown interest in running and we both officially started the C25K program last week. We are doing our week two, run two tonight, with our last run being very successful (we went 2.52 miles in 31 minutes and kept our running pace at 9:50/mile). I'm so happy to not feel alone in my struggle with this!

I too am about 290 and I have gotten into running over the last few years. I am about to run the Peachtree road race 10k for the 3rd year in a row. I have run another 10k and a 5 k in the past. My goal ultimately is to loose some weight and be healthy. 230 is where I would like to get too. I have been there a few years ago and that required a lot of time and I was younger and had the time. I was biking about 1.5 hours a day and going low carb. Now as a married man with a child on the way I find it harder to have time to run. Especially in the winter when the sun is not up as long. This summer my wife has been incredible allowing me to go out running a good bit in anticipation for the race. I was a big guy in high school and hated running. I started working out in the toe shoes and have found as a big guy it is easier on me. I don't spring up so I don't cme down as hard. All my running for three years have been in them. I have had surgrery on both knees back in high school. I now enjoy the simplicity of runs. I love the way I feel and the time to my thoughts. WHat do others do for running in the winter? I really don't want to go to the gym. I hate treadmeals. I want to go some where.

Congratulations to both you and your son on digging into the C25K program. A bit of advice I often give to folks doing C25K is to slow down; running at a ~10:00 pace is pretty quick for this program. By slowing down you'll be able to run further, allow your body to more gradually adapt to the rigors of running without causing an injury, and prepare you for the days when you've finished C25K and are looking to run a 10K or longer race.

I know a lot of folks are surprised when I suggest they slow down as there seems to be a belief by many that they need to run fast to get fast. Nothing could be further from the truth. Case in point, for the last fifteen months I've been typically training at about a 10:00 pace, and yet I run my races at a pace between 7:00 (for a 5K) and 7:30 (for a 10K).

Congratulations to you as well for your commitment to running. Here are a few comments on your post, kinda-sorta in the same order as they apply to your words:

Running does take time, however, for any given amount of exercise, running will yield more benefits per unit of time than will pretty much any other form of exercise, bicycling included.

When my wife was pregnant with our first I also developed a case of "sympathetic pregnancy" (i.e. I got fat), and it was running which finally helped me cram enough exercise into the few hours per week I had available.

Regarding winter running; given I live in New Hampshire and given I *hate* running on "dreadmills", I know very well the frustration you have at trying to keep a running program going all winter long. This last winter I tried something different in that I found a converted Rail Trail a few miles from where I live, bought a headlight, and did most of my week-day running after dark. The whole headlight thing turned out to be so successful I managed to log almost 600 miles between the Winter Solstice and the Vernal Equinox.

I know some other runners with access to gyms with indoor tracks for running; I'd probably take advantage of such a gym if there was one convenient to where I live and/or work. Maybe you're lucky enough to have one by you.

I'm just barely in the 200+ club and I'm logging nearly 35 miles a week. I stumbled across this thread from the Active.com running newsletter, and thought it was AWESOME. I'm basically here to say things that many of you know -- this is entirely possible and you're all capable of amazing things. When I started running, I was about 280 pounds and could barely make a mile. I shed 85 pounds within about a year and was able to log 4-5 milers without the same difficulty I had before. Within a year!

Now I'm on a roller coaster ride of weight from 200 to about 220 -- although ideally I want to be just under 200. I've finally admitted to myself that I need to pay attention to my diet to get there, and I'm moving in the right direction. I'm back under 210 and well on my way to my goal weight while marathon training for my next race.

I think everyone here that's trying to do this is amazing. It was a long hard road, full of sacrifices -- you HAVE to make time to run, even when you don't want to, but this is an ENTIRELY achievable thing. Good luck to all of you and I hope to hear some really inspirational stories in the future.

Edit: I also want to note to anyone that does the run/walk thing -- yes, there are jerks out there that will make you feel like you're not good enough if you can't run the whole way. Don't listen to them. Seriously. Every day you're achieving something. Maybe it's running 5 minutes and walking 2 instead of running 4 minutes and walking 2. Whatever it is, you're getting better. And you're spending your time making yourself better. I, for one, welcome every single person I see on my running path on the levee along the Mississippi in New Orleans. Everyone is out there, busting their butt, making themselves better. They made a choice to do something today instead of just think about doing something. Everyone, no matter how fast or slow, gets a smile, a nod, and a wave from me. (unless it's really really hot.. then I feel like I'm smiling, but it probably looks more like a grimace)

I also make it a point to say "Hey" to all of the folks I see out on the trail, and I typically stick around at the end of races "until the last dog is hung", so I can cheer those whom need it the most.

My name is Scott. I started this year out on Jan 13th at 316.2 lbs, Entered a 12 week weight loss contest, dropped 74 pounds and won. A week after my last weigh in of that contest I got myself a new starting weight of 260.0 lbs and then signed up for a full 26.2 mile marathon to be held November 1, 2014 in Wynne, Arkansas to help me maintain and improve upon the weight loss progress I made in the beginning of the year.

I am in week 12 of a 30 week marathon training program which consist of 4 runs per week and I could use all the help and support I can get. The first week of that program is simply walking and I spent the first 3 or 4 months of the year doing nothing but walking. Weeks 2 through 10 of the program consisted of walking & running. I started with jogging 10-15 seconds at a time and was able to work myself up to a minute of jogging so, I created a blog called www.icanrunaminute.com to help track my progress and get support from fellow runners.

20 years ago in 1994 I ran my first marathon with a time somewhere around 4:30 or 4:40. One of the things I remembered is that it was very hard and figured one full marathon every 10 years would be good enough. 10 years ago I signed up for my 2nd full marathon just a couple days before the run and mainly walked that one but finished. This will be my third marathon and I would like to finish it in a time comperable to my first but, even thought I'm still down about 60 lbs from where I started this year I really need to drop more weight by November to help make that dream come true.

That's about it for now, just wanted to jump in this group and introduce myself. I wish everyone the best of luck with their training endeavors & weight loss goals

I too am over 200 and dropping, I was 250 and have been as low as 199 after my first half marathon. I'm at 210 and am just starting to train for my first marathon in Dec. The best advice I've ever gotten was also the stuipest thing but worked. In the book the non-runners marathon trainer it said never tell youself that you have to run today, change it to I get to run today. Like I said it seems stuip but I tried to continue running many times over the past years and always quit, it's been over a year since I read the book and I look forward to each run. The other thing was anytime your running and you have a good experance bank it in your memory. Grate blog!

Just had my 48th birthday this weekend and decided I'm tired of being so heavy, so along with eating (a lot) less, I've decided to try this C25K program. I'm 5'11" and weigh 326lb. It's a sad situation. I have no one to blame but myself. I'm going to do something about it and I've decided to start TODAY. I used to be a cyclist back in the 90s but now I'm just a couchist. But not anymore...I am going to make a change. I don't know if I'll like running but it's worth a shot.

Hi all.....It is now July and I thought I would give an update. Since I last posted, I have walked every day, minimum of one mile up to 4.2 miles a day. That does not include all the other walking I do in a day...that is what I do. I have participated in three 5 K's, I might finish last but I finish. One person told me after the last one last Saturday, you finished in front of those who did not get off of the couch. Yes I did. I am pleased to be getting closer to under 20 minute miles each time. As I said in my last message, I can't run due to artificial knees....but I am moving and doing. This past weekend was the start of the Tour de France. In the past I participated in the Tour de Fleece. Using a spinning wheel, making yarn for three weeks with goals. This was good for me the past two years as I was recovering from knee surgeries and the doctor wanted me to flex my ankles many times a day to help with blood flow. When he realized what my kind of spinning was, he said go for it. One year I actually had spun over 3 miles of finished yarn. This year will not have as much because I am no longer sedentary. My goals for the three weeks of the Tour are....a quadathalon. I walk first thing in the morning, minimum of a mile...today was 3.....then I come home and turn on the Tour...and ride my stationary bike.....I do not have a real bike. My goal is to get up to one hour a day...so far I am up to 30 minutes. Then I spin for 3 hours. Then I get in the pool and tread water for 15 minutes...too small of a pool for laps. I may make a few days a pentathalon....I may add horseback riding. I love the energy I now have from the walking that I started. Have I mentioned that since March I have lost 35 pounds?? My next goal in the future? The Peachtree Roadrace in 2015. Walking in 2 hours or less.